Shtiya
by DPAK
Summary: Title changed to something I actually like. A collection of Avatar-related drabbles and ficlets corresponding to certain themes, mostly revolving around Bato and Hakoda because I love Bakoda. Rating may change laters. Latest theme: Foreign.
1. Mother

A/N: I'm doing a 100 Themes challenge on DA and I decided to try to do all of them as Avatar-related ficlets and drabbles. This is the first one I have written. Theme #22- Mother

* * *

Hakoda draped his arm across his best friend's waist, burying his face into his sleeping companion's neck. Now that the war was over, he was hoping to be more open about his choice in partner. He wasn't worried about what his tribe would say about the same-sex relationship, as the Southern Water tribe was generally quite liberal concerning such things; in fact, the relationship might not even come as a surprise to most of the villagers. Many of them had long questioned the closeness of the two men. What Hakoda was worried about was what his children would think.

Sokka would most likely accept the relationship considering that he was now engaged to the current firelord, Zuko. That and Sokka had always considered Bato as a part of their family. The teenager would probably be happy for them and wish them the best... But Katara was a different story.

Bato had once admitted to Hakoda that he didn't want Katara to feel that he was replacing Kya, that that was far from his intention. But with Katara's love for her mother, she might have a fit at learning her father was in a relationship again, despite the number of years it had been. Hakoda rolled over onto his back and sighed deeply, trying to figure out how he would handle it if Katara went off the handle.

"Hakoda..." At some point in his thoughts, Bato had rolled over and was staring at him, still half-asleep. "You need to get to sleep. Otherwise, you'll be exhausted when we meet with the children later."

Hakoda gave his friend a weak smile and planted a light kiss on his forehead. A thought suddenly occured to him and he let out a chuckle, causing Bato to raise an eyebrow at him curiously. Hakoda smirked as he hugged his lover close to him, the amusement obvious in his tone of voice. "If it doesn't bother Katara, I think the kids should call you mom..."

"Don't even begin to joke like that." Came the slightly annoyed response.


	2. Words

A/N: This is Theme #80- Words. ALSO: This is set before the infamous little battle in which Bato obtains his burn-scar. I will actually be writing that scene out for a later theme. X3 I'm awful, I know.

* * *

Hakoda sighed as he hunched over, his elbows digging into his lap uncomfortably. He pretended to be looking over the map of the western Eath Kingdom. His mind was elsewhere. He and his men had just finished setting up camp about a mile of the Mo Ce Sea. when the scouts returned with reports of a Fire Nation platoon stationed outside of the Mo Ce Abbey. (While it was rather small conquest for the Fire Nation, upper-class Fire Nation citizens wanted to get ahold of the famous perfume that came from the abbey, which the nuns refused to sell or trade with the tyrannical nation.) The scouts suggested that the Southen Watertribe could easily take the solidiers on so long as they kept the element of surprise. Hakoda agreed and he formulated the pre-dawn attack with them before announcing the plan to his men over dinner.

Despite his men's enthusism towards the attack, Hakoda couldn't shake the feeling that something horrible was going to happen. He dismissed himself from dinner and promptly went to his tent while the other tribesmen stayed out and talked excitedly. He was far too absorbed in his own doubts and worries to want to listen to the idle chatter.

The distracted cheif's head snapped up as he heard the tent flap rustle as Bato let himself in without spoken invitation. Bato always knew when something was wrong with his best friend and always looked for a way to make things right again. Hakoda loved Bato for that.

"...Hakoda."

Hakoda sighed again and rolled up the map as his friend kneeled beside him. It seemed Bato wanted to talk things out. That was fine and all, but Hakoda felt dissappointed by it. For as well as his friend knew him, couldn't he tell that he didn't want to hear any sugar-coated lies? Everything was not going to be alright. "It's just pre-battle jitters."

"...I'm sure." Bato muttered, thoroughly unconvinced. The taller man bit his lip as he carefully thought about his next action, sensing that the cheif didn't want to talk about whatever was on his mind. After an awkward mment of silence that rarely passed between the two, Bato slid his arm around Hakoda's broad shoulders and pulled his friend into a tight embrace. Hakoda smiled faintly as he allowed his eyes to close, content to just be held. Bato's heartbeat drummed steadily in his ear in a soothing manner and his troubled thoughts began to drift away.

It was in moments like these that Hakoda mused over the idea of furthering his relationship with the other man, for it was in moments like these, when Bato showed such a deep understanding of his wants and needs, that Hakoda could swear that Bato wanted the same. Perhaps, after the war they ould become more than just best friends like he often dreamed about on cold, lonely nights. If they survived the war, that is. Hakoda cringed as the lingering doubts snaked their way back into his brain. The thought of losing Bato was enough tomake him sick.

Bato frowned as he felt his friend shudder in his arms and he ran a hand soothingly through Hakoda's hair as he leaned his head down to whisper in s companion's ear: "You have nothing to worry about, Hakoda. Nothing will seperate us; not this battle or this war. I promise."

Hakoda felt the hot tears streaming down his cheeks before he stop them. Even if they were just sweet lies, Bato always knews he right words to say to comfort him.


	3. Sacrificial

A/N: I always pictured that Bato received his burn-scar from saving someone else's life in that battle. In the original draft, he saved Hakoda's life. But after rereading it and over-analyzing it, I found that it wouldn't make any sense if he had with the way I had written it. So, instead, he wound up saving some little n00b's life.

And on a side-note: I suck at writing battle-sequences. VV;

* * *

Bato glanced over at Hakoda, their eyes meeting for mere moments before the chief turned his attention to the sleeping Fire Nation camp. The men readied themselves for the attack as the scouts let out a low whistle to indicate the perimeter was secured and it was safe to move. The water tribe warriors began to sneak forward, their weapons glinting in the pale light of early sunrise. Thirty more feet until their perfect ambush… Careful to make as little sound as possible. Twenty-five feet… Now twenty… Fifteen…

A fire nation infantryman stepped out of his tent with a stretch and a yawn. Hakoda froze in place as he noticed the soldier and quickly motioned to his men to stop moving. But it was too late. The soldier's eyes widened as he noticed the tribesmen in the woods and let out a startled yell. "EVERYONE! WAKE UP! WE'RE UNDER AT-"

The soldier collapsed with a loud OOF as Hakoda's boomerang connected with the side of his head and knocked him unconscious. The chief cursed under his breath as mass movement was heard inside the tents, indicating that the fire nation camp had received the message and were now preparing themselves for battle. Hakoda signaled his men to continue forward to salvage what little advantage they had left with a harsh war-cry.

Fire nation soldiers rushed out of the tents in their quickly and sloppily thrown on armor as the warrior's began their assault. Spears clashed against armor; fireballs whizzed through the air, only to be narrowly dodged by the trained tribesmen. Despite their loss of the element of surprise, the Southern warriors seemed to be driving the infantrymen back towards their ships..

Hakoda smirked as he twirled his spear and slashed it into the side of a cheaply armored soldier, forgetting all about his worries from the previous night. The soldier stumbled back, falling to his knees as Hakoda prepared to deliver another blow.

"Watch out!"

A familiar voice distracted Hakoda from his attack as he looked to the side to see Bato push one of the younger, less-experienced tribesmen out of the way of a rather large fireball. The young man fell heavily to the ground, absolutely stunned while Bato took the blow that had been intended for him. Time seemed to slow as Hakoda watched his best friend collapse onto the ground, letting out pained cries as the flesh of his left arm became engulfed in the flame. Hakoda growled ferociously and lunged forward, unable to control the immense rage that overcame him. He slammed the butt of the spear into the soldier's gut and watched as the man who injured his friend flew back and collided with a tree. The soldier looked up at Hakoda, the fear clear in his eyes as he shakily turned and fled.

"RETREAT!" Somewhere to Hakoda's right, the platoon leader shouted to his men and the Fire Nation soldiers obeyed, turning and fleeing towards their ships.

Cheers erupted wildly among the Water Tribe as the boats took of and sailed away. The cries of joy seemed distant and foreign to Hakoda as he kneeled down beside his injured friend. The burn was as bad as he expected it to look, completely devouring Bato's arm and covering a good portion of his chest. The smell of seared flesh made the chief's stomach churn, but the feeling was dwarfed by the wide array of emotions that were flooding through him. Hakoda growled lowly as he looked over at the young tribesman Bato had saved. The young warrior, Kato, still sat on the ground, wide-eyed and tearful, shuddering as he looked at the man who had pushed him out of harm's way.

"H-he saved me…"

Hakoda nodded slightly as he focused back on Bato, carefully lifting the barely conscious man to avoid bothering the still smoldering arm. Kato stood as well, trailing behind the chief as he began to walk towards the abbey. The young man continued to yammer on with apologies and how he had been careless, but Hakoda wasn't listening to him. His mind raced with questions: iHow could Bato have done something so stupid and selfless? Didn't he realize how much I need him? /i

Bato's eyelids fluttered as he tried to remain conscious, despite the pain. "I'm sorry, Hakoda, but I couldn't let one of our men die."


	4. Pain

A/N: Theme #88: Pain.

This theme was inspired from the following scene:

Katara: (after hearing a wolf howl) That wolf sounds so sad...  
Sokka: It's probably wounded.  
Bato: No. It's been seperated from the pack. I understand that pain. It's how I felt when the Water Tribe Warriors had to leave me behind. They are my family and being apart from them is more painful than my wounds.

Just a little Bato angst. :( It makes me sad.

* * *

Bato rolled over onto his back, once again finding himself unable to sleep. It had refused to come easily to him since his injury nearly three months ago and the resulting healing time spent alone at the abbey. Though it was a reluctant decision that Hakoda had made, Bato still felt utterly depressed after being forced to stay with the nuns while the men continued their journey to Ba Sing Se. He had never in his life been separated from his tribe- much less Hakoda- for such a long period of time.

Hakoda had assured him that he would send a message back to the abbey each time the tribe set up camp so that, as soon as the nuns deemed him fit to travel, he could come and rejoin them. But that was not enough to dull the deep, throbbing pang in his chest at night. The healing process was taking way too long in his mind. The nuns, on the other hand, disagreed, stating that the warrior was fortunate to be breathing considering how close the blast had come to his heart.

Bato glanced down at his bandaged arm- the dressing would be changed again shortly after breakfast as it had everyday since he was brought here- and tried to will his arm to move, to just be able to flex his fingers. The digits barely twitched in response, earning a defeated sigh from the man. The nuns had also told him he was blessed to still have the arm intact and that he would be extremely lucky if he managed to regain full use of his arm again. The nerve-endings in his hand and arm had been burned away in the flame and the nuns told him to be glad he couldn't feel the agonizing pain that came with such a horrible burn.

There were moments, however, in which he wished he could have the physical pain and, in exchange, lose the tormenting mental and emotional anguish he felt on a daily basis. It was a horrible feeling to be separated from his tribe, his pack, his family, but the feeling was made worse when he realized he may never be able to use his left arm fully again, which would make it hard for him to scrimmage and fight. Unless he could regain full use of his arm, he would be an ineffective warrior and he would be a burden on his fellow warriors. That thought: the idea of being unable to aid his tribe- to aid Hakoda- pained him far worse than any burn in the world.


	5. Introduction

A/N: So when I thought about this theme, I imagined a tiny Bato and Hakoda meeting for the first time at age six and nearly automatically establishing a life-long bond. I wanted Hakoda to be a complete goofball (Sokka had to get it from somewhere XD) and imagined him trying to show-off for Bato and failing. Bato, though, I pictured being a loner as a little kid. So, in order to make him one, I killed off his mom ad made his dad be gone for long periods of time. nodnodnod

And you know what? The best part of writing for minor characters is that you can make up whatever kind of back-story you want. XDDDD BTW, 6-year-old Hakoda is like the cutest child EVER. Srsly.

* * *

Bato hated being placed among the tribe's children during the days that his father was away. He was a quiet little six-year-old and didn't feel like he belonged around the rambunctious herd of children. His mother died nearly years ago after suffering for weeks due to some unknown illness that the village doctors couldn't treat. Since the incident, he chose to close himself off and remain completely silent, having not uttered a word in that long period of time. His father, Massak, had been left no choice but to ask the village elders if there was anyone who could watch his son when he was to go on hunting expeditions in order to support himself and his boy. An older couple agreed to take Bato under their care when his father wasn't around. He respected the couple for taking care of him, but he refused to talk to anyone, despite their efforts. And when he was rounded up with the other children to learn and play, he chose to sit on a snow bank and stare out over the icy plains and over the sparkling sea. Early on, some of the children had tried to get him to play, but he pointedly ignored them and they quickly gave up, leaving him isolated within the pack.

So here he was: six years old and desperately wanting to be somewhere other than this snowy village. He wasn't sure where he would go if he left- the Earth Kingdom probably- but so long as it was away from here, the place where his mother no longer was, he didn't care. Thoughts of his mother drifted through his head, and each day, try as he might to stop it, he felt her memory slipping away from him. It was enough to make him want to cry, and he would have had someone not plopped down beside him.

"Hey there!" The boy exclaimed happily. "I'm Hakoda. What's your name?"

He willed away the sadness and gave the other boy a blank stare before returning his gaze to the sea.

"So what'cha looking for?" The intruder of his personal space asked, peering at him with big curious eyes. Bato had seen the boy before, playing with the other children; he seemed to be a natural leader despite his goofy nature. "Are you looking for turtle-seals? I'm going to go hunting for them with my dad next year!"

Bato's eyes stared at them boy as though he were crazy when the kid suddenly jumped up, flailing his arms.

"And I'm gonna be all RAAAAARGH! WhenI see one and jump on it's like SWOOSH and it's gonna be all ARRRARRRARRRR and then I'll take my club and THWACKAPOW! It'll be dead!" The animated boy had been moving his arms in an illustrating manner while talking and ended his summary of how the hunt would go by dramatically falling over "dead". He quickly sat up again, grinning at Bato who stared at him as though he were a madman. This was certainly the most creative attempt anyone had made at starting a conversation with him and he felt a smile beginning to tug at the corner of his lips.

Hakoda noticed this and jumped up again, running to grab a stick from a crude snowman; the defenseless snowman was now missing an arm, but that didn't seem to bother him as he spun it around. "Or maybe I'll take a spear and kill it Hakoda-style!" He twirled around with stick, trying to show off his "skills", but quickly slipped on a patch of ice and fell flat on his butt. The stick flew out of his grasp when he slipped and, obeying gravity, bonked the embarrassed boy on the noggin as it fell back down to earth.

After watching the completely absurd scene unfold before him, Bato finally cracked a smile and chuckled at his fallen companion. It was such an odd sound to his own ears.

"You think that's funny?" Hakoda tried to pretend being offended, but the wide grin on his face gave him away. He stood up and walked back over to Bato, his eyes twinkling with joy. "Now that I made you laugh, you wanna tell me your name?"

Bato gave him a quizzical look and the boy stuck his tongue out teasingly.

"We can't be best friends if I don't know your name, silly."

_Best friends? When had that been established? _He pondered. Hakoda, having seemingly read his mind, laughed.

"You look like you need a friend, so I'm going to take that spot! And we're going to be the two most awesome warriors in the tribe! We'll be SUPER BEST FRIENDS!"

For some unexplainable reason, Bato felt he could trust Hakoda on that and opened his mouth to speak. His voice came out soft and with a light rasp from disuse, "I'm Bato."


	6. 67 Percent

A/N: At first, I honestly had no idea what I was going to write for 67. Then I honestly came across that statistic and was inspired. XDDDDD This is quite obviously AU, as it is set in our current time.

On a side-note: Sokka is one of the brainy kids in high school and he also happens to be on the swim team. And he does well in shop class, despite the time he nearly sliced his finger off. ;;;;; Don't ask how my mind works.

* * *

"It smells delicious." Hakoda said with a grin, placing a kiss on Bato's cheek before sitting down at the table with the family. Sokka had already began wolfing his dinner down and was well on his way to getting seconds by the time his father had joined them. Bato often marveled at how much food the boy could eat. It was equally amazing how the teen hadn't eaten them out of house-and-home by now. Luckily his sister didn't share the same eating habits as she politely ate her dinner, stopping for a minute to poke at the peas, her nose turning up a bit in disgust.

"You don't have to eat them if you don't want to." As their step-father, Bato didn't ever purposefully do anything to upset the kids. Hakoda told him he didn't have to worry about that, but he still wasn't going to risk having them dislike him.

Katara smiled and pushed the peas to the side, "Thanks, Bato."

Sokka grinned and pointed at them with his fork, his mouth still full of food, "Can I have 'em?"

Katara, though slightly disgusted by her brother's bad table manners, nodded and raked the peas onto his plate.

"So how was school?" Hakoda asked before popping a piece of the roast in his mouth.

"I passed my CPR class!" Katara beamed. Hakoda gave her a proud smile. He knew how much she wanted to go into the nursing field and passing CPR practically guaranteed her an internship at the city's hospital through the high school's nursing program so long as she kept her grades up.

"And what about you Sokka?"

The teen continued to eat as he responded, "Well, I read something interesting today before practice. See, in my sociology class, we're getting into the chapter on love and relationships and stuff and I was reading an article for our assignment. And I saw this statistic…"

Sokka trailed off as he took a bite out of a rather large chunk of meat. "Actually, I wonder if you and Bato fit into it…"

"Well, what is it?"

"The article said that 67 of all gay couples have sex at least three times a week. What about you guys?"

The reactions he received from the causally asked question were priceless. Katara looked absolutely horrified. While her dad's sexuality and choice of partner didn't bother her, she did NOT want to think about her dad having sex. Period. Bato's eyes widened and he dropped his fork, his face turning several different shades of red. Hakoda face-palmed and sighed. He was definitely going to have to have a talk with his son about what was inappropriate to talk about at supper.

Sokka blinked, clearly not realizing that he had just mentally scarred his sister and embarrassed his dads. "Did I say something wrong?"


	7. Breaking the Rules

A/N: idk, seems "meh" to me on second reading. -- But this is what I came up with for this theme... so yay? XDDDD

Next theme will be moar Bato angst. ; Because I can.

* * *

"Bato!" Hakoda slung his arm casually over his friend's shoulder, a devious grin plastered on his features. The pair had just finished their last day of cleaning the weapons hut as per their punishment and it seemed that Hakoda already had their next prank in mind. Since the pair had became teenagers, Hakoda became the mastermind behind their pranks and Bato went along with them just because he wanted to make sure Hakoda didn't do anything too stupid. That and he would do anything Hakoda asked him to. Their first prank had involved a few gull-geese they had rounded up and released into the women's bath house, back when they were thirteen. It had earned them three weeks worth of garbage disposal, but it had been worth it to watch the women flee out of the bath house, half-naked and screaming as the gull-geese chased them. In the three years since that first prank, the boys began to pull off pranks at least once a month, ranging from "the Living Snowman" to "the Bear-Seal in the Dining Hall". (The Bear-Seal had been a dead, stuffed one, not a real one. The boys were pranksters, not idiots.) Their last prank, resentfully dubbed "the Great Blubber Fiasco" , had been their greatest to date, officially earning the boys their titles as the "Legendary Pranksters". But that one is a long story. Perhaps it'll be told another time. ;D

"What are we going to do this time?" Bato said with a slight sigh, imagining what task might be given to them for their next punishment. At first the elders had given them punishments of extra chores in hope that the boys would be kept busy enough that they wouldn't have time to pull off anymore pranks. After several pranks, however, they saw that wasn't going to be the case and began to use the punishments as a way to push off unwanted jobs onto the pair, such as cleaning the public huts and garbage detail.

"This one won't get us into too much trouble, I swear!"

Oh how many times Bato had heard that one. He shook his head and chuckled, "Just give me the details."

Hakoda's grin widened as he leaned closer and began to whisper the plan to his partner-in-crime, who added some details of his own too it. Bato knew they would get in trouble for it, but, at the same time, he just didn't care. If it meant he could spend time with Hakoda, he would gladly break all the rules in the world.


	8. Alone

A/N: I wrote this a couple days ago, but didn't have time to type it up and submit it until now. And there's a funny ( well to me at least) story that goes along with it:

Okay, so I just finished writing this when my mom finally got done with her doctor's appointment and I went to get the Blazer and pull it around so she wouldn't have to walk so far. Well, we had this Oldies station on and when I started the Blazer, Diana Ross and the Temptations' song "My World is Empty Without You" had just started playing on the station. Seriously. The first line of the song is "My world is empty without out you, baaaaaaaabe." I laughed hard because of how appropriate it was. Then I felt horrible for laughing.

* * *

Being imprisoned wasn't as bad as rumors had led him to believe. Sure they were put through hours of interrogation and treated them more harshly than the other prisoners, but it was all worth it when he was able to slip into the loving embrace on his long-time friend. It had taken a lot of bribing and they had to take on extra chores to convince the guards to let them share a cell, but the men were willing to do whatever it took to guarantee that the two of them were not separated.

However, after only two weeks of being held at the Fire Nation capital's prison, the palace officials finally singled Hakoda out as the leader of the invasion force and deemed him "dangerous" as he could be plotting and rallying his men to escape. Arrangements were promptly made to have him transferred to the Boiling Rock.

Hakoda had given him the news in a somber tone, holding him close and running his fingers through his hair gently. He knew protesting wouldn't change anything so he just sadly clung to his chief. They were going to send Hakoda away in a week and he wanted to spend every second he could with his partner until they did.

On their last night together, he held the chief close to him as tightly as he could, unable to cry despite his want to, while the other man whispered soothing words to him: promises of how this wasn't permanent and they would be reunited soon enough. He knew the words to be true, because Hakoda had never broken a promise to him before. But that didn't stop the aching pain in his chest when they led his lover away in shackles. Nor did it stop the tears from flowing when he watched his best friend onto a war balloon for transport to the maximum-security prison-island.

His fellow warriors recognized his sorrow and offered their pity and words of encouragement. Their efforts did little to cheer him up as he returned to the lonely cell that night and lay on the cot that seemed so cold and empty without the other body in it, pressed against him tenderly. Getting comfortable seemed nigh impossible without those strong arms wrapped around him and warm breath tickling his neck; sleep refused to come without the steady beating and rhythmic breathing behind him.

Somewhere in the distance, far out in the woods beyond the prison, a wolf howled, soft and sad. The lonely cry resonated sharply in his aching heart.


	9. Old

A/N: Idea for this theme came from what I thought Hakoda's reaction would be to find out his mother was married to Master Pakku. XD Beyond that, I really don't know what to say about this one... Ummm... just something silly and light-hearted to make-up for the next two drabbles which will be both angsty (Bato ANGST and, surprisingly enough, Hakoda ANGST) and written in first-person, present tense.

* * *

Hakoda knew he wasn't old, but, at the same time, he knew he wasn't exactly young either. It was the curse of approaching middle-age: the realization that there were things he was getting too old for certain things. He had admitted this to Bato over the course of their journey during their nightly discussions about the future; about what they would do after the war was over.

One night, Bato had teasingly asked him if he was going to try to settle down and find a good woman when they returned from war; that it was high time the chief tried to pursue a relationship with someone. Hakoda had somewhat jokingly told his friend that he was going to be too old to be in any form of a relationship by the time the war came to an end. Bato had laughed at the time, but found himself discouraged by the revelation and, for the first time, felt that he actually didn't stand a chance with Hakoda since the chief apparently didn't want to be in a relationship.

Several weeks, and a couple battles later, Bato brought up the topic of love, asking the chief if he had ever moved on and fallen in love since Kaya's death. Hakoda had laughed and said that, even though he was too old for "crushes", he did have his eye on someone; that he had for years. When Bato asked him in a slightly jealous tone if he knew the lucky lady, Hakoda laughed more and, without another word, kissed him, much to the taller man's surprise.

A couple months later, after finally setting up camp off the coast near Ba Sing Se, one of the younger warriors, Kato, had walked into the chief's tent unannounced to deliver scouts' reports and caught the pair in the middle of sex. The young man quickly backed out of the tent, his face red as he stuttered through several apologies for interrupting them. Hakoda sighed and said that he was definitely too old to deal with the flustered and possibly mentally scarred young warrior. Bato agreed.

More time passed; the eclipse occurred and, though they were taken prisoner, the defeat felt a lot like victory in their minds. During their brief time together in the capitol's prison, Bato brought up the topic of their future together after hearing some of the warriors talking about their families back home. Hakoda off-handedly commented that he was getting to be too old for his job and added that he would love to be able to settle down and pass down the title of Chief to his son.

After the war ended and the warriors returned to the South Pole, Hakoda was both shocked and ecstatic to find his mother had remarried even at her age. That same day, he spent the entire afternoon making a betrothal necklace and, when Bato joined him later in the evening, asked his best friend to marry him. Of all the things he thought he was getting "too old" for, he decided he wasn't going to let marriage be one of them.


	10. I Can't

A/N: ...oo I don't know what to say about this one except that it is set when they're about 20 and Hakoda had recently married Kya.

* * *

He frowns as I find myself unable to control myself anymore, my tears flowing as he lifts a hand to cradle my cheek. His thumb gently strokes my cheek and I find myself instinctively nuzzling against the calloused hand. I want to stop crying for his sake, but I just can't.

"What's wrong?" He asks softly, though still stressing the second word out of his confusion. He sits up and pats his lap; biting my lip, I crawl into it and curl up. I can't help but feel safe and secure as his arms wrap themselves so perfectly around me.

Just moments before, we had been a tangle of limbs; two bodies pressed together in a passionate embrace, lips locked and hands exploring. I had been so lost in the heat that I can't recall exactly when he had began undressing us, though I vaguely recall helping him out of his top. It certainly wasn't the first time things had gotten so intimate between us, no. In fact, in the past couple years since we both turned sixteen, we have had several encounters that had led to more than this. But this was the first time we've had sex since he got married. At least, it would have been had I not come back to my sense when his hand slipped down my pants.

It was at that moment, that horribly timed, incredibly awkward moment that reality set in. If his wife knew about this, I can only imagine how she would feel. She was, and always had been, such a good friend to me; she even apologized to me shortly after he had proposed to her. She had known all along how deep the bond I shared with him went. She knew that I loved him…. That I still love him… That it broke my heart to see him married to another… to see him and know that he belonged to her. I think it was then in my thought process that I had started crying; when it finally sunk in that I can't have him if he belongs to another. And if I can't have him all for myself, then I can't do this. I can't kiss him, I can't hold him, I can't be intimate, I can't whisper those three words to him and listen as he repeats them to me. I can't. Not any more.

So for the last time, I look into those beautiful blue eyes that rival the ocean and I kiss him tenderly, pouring in all my love and affection into it. I grip his shoulders tightly as I pull back and stand. He wants to grab me and pull me back down; it is clearly written on his face. I tear myself away from his steady gaze as I go to gather my discarded clothing. As I straighten up, he places a hand on my shoulder. The same hand that had caught my tears earlier; it is still damp. I turn my head to glance at him over my shoulder. His expression is so hurt and confused as he tried to figure out why I was leaving; he was most likely wondering if he had done something wrong. I force myself to look away from him again; if I hadn't, I would have fallen under his spell once more.

"I'm sorry… I love you, Hakoda… but… I can't."


	11. Abandoned

A/N: I've actually had this written for... about 2 weeks I think... ; I still have mixed feelings about it. I like the concept behind it, but I'm feeling kinda bleh about how I went about writing it. I dunno. I'll let you guys be the judges.

Also, title changed for the last time. I know Kirihana will know where I got it from, but for the rest of you: Shtiya is the Inuit word for "My Strength".

* * *

"Hakoda, we need to talk."

I turned to face Miksa as he entered the room. Aside from Bato, Miksa was my closest companion and, to an extent, my war advisor. His face which had been masked in war paint less than twenty-four hours ago, was now cloaked in an emotion I could best describe as being worry and anxiety. This was going to be bad news. I know I must not look much better as I hadn't slept since I carried Bato here and the nuns had begun to care for him. I had to send the fretting Kato away several hours ago as he had been making me nervous with his blabbering and pacing. I let out a sigh, "What is it?"

"Let's talk outside; you look like you could use some fresh air." He comments idly, as though it were going to be easy to peel me away from my best friend's side. Bato had yet to reawaken since losing consciousness moments before arrival at the abbey. That was part of the reason I wanted to refuse to leave the room: I wanted to be there when he woke up; I wanted to be the first thing he saw. Not a nun (spirits bless them), not the bandages, not an empty room. Me.

Another sigh escapes my lips and I slowly stand, following the man out of the room. I barely step out of the doorframe before leaning against the cold stone wall, staring at the ground because I already know what he was going to say. And I don't want to listen to it. I don't want to even think about it. Not while the man who had always been my side since childhood was lying in the room behind me, suffering from a horrible burn that I could do nothing about.

"We can't stay at the abbey for very long. We have to keep moving if we're to reach the Eastern Earth Kingdom before the weather changes."

"I know that but…" I glance at the door to catch a glance at Bato as I trail off.

"I know why you want to stay, Hakoda. None of us want to leave him here either. But we don't know how long it will take him to heal-"

"Then we'll take him with us!" I blurt out, already knowing that it wasn't a possibility. Miksa rests a hand on my shoulder sympathetically.

"You know we can't do that. None of the men know how to take care of a burn wound that is as bad as the one Bato has. Not to mention the danger he'll be in if we were ambushed during our travels. He'd be a a much higher risk of further injury, even death, if we don't let him heal here where it's safe."

"But…" A soft thud finishes my thoughts as I punch the wall with the side of my fist. "How… how long can we stay? I want to at least be here when he wakes up… I don't want him to think we just abandoned him…"

"Of course not. We'll wait at least three days. He'll be awake before then."

I give him a nod and walk back into Bato's room without another word. As far as I was concerned, our discussion was over and I needed to be back by my best friend's side. Grey-blue eyes met mine, catching me off-guard. After recovering from my initial shock at seeing him awake, I offer him a smile. "It's about time you woke up. You had me worried."

He just frowns and goes back to staring at the ceiling. "You leave in a few days…"

"Bato, you know I don't want to leave you here." I state as I approach his cot and kneel beside it.

"You're still leaving me." Like a child throwing a tantrum, he refuses to look at me. I remedy this by leaning over him and look him in the eye. The hurt is very clear in his eyes. I hate seeing it there. Spirits do I ever hate doing anything that causes him pain.

"I promise you that we are not abandoning you. I am not abandoning you. I will send correspondence every time we stop and you can rejoin us as soon as the nuns say it is alright for you to do so." He still refuses to look at me even though I can feel his demeanor lifting a bit. I lean down further and place a chaste kiss on his lips, noting the way the corner of said lips twitched upwards with a smile of my own. "I want you back by my side as soon as possible, Bato... so believe me when I tell you that this isn't forever."


	12. Memory

A/N: Summary: Hakoda reflects on his ever evolving relationship with Bato before asking him to marry him.

Oddly enough, "Shut Up (and Sleep With Me)" was playing when typing the memory for "Desire".

I love this one.

I hate this one.

I both love and hate this one... AT THE SAME TIME!!

* * *

He wanted this to be perfect; that's why he spent so much time smoothing each stone and even more time carving the symbols onto them. Each symbol evoked a different memory in him, of times he spent with him- his love.

(_"Bato! Come on! I found this really cool cave!" And eight year old Hakoda dashed over to his friend, almost colliding into the other boy in his excitement. He took a minute to catch his breath before he grabbed Bato's arm and tugged on it, "It'll be our secret hideout!"_

_The cave Hakoda had found appeared to be a molarbear's doing, but had, since its initial digging, collapsed about eight foot into it, leaving a decent sized ice-cave for the boys to play in. Everyday they would meet at the entrance as soon as they could get away from their parents and they would spend the entire day talking, joking, making up outrageous tales until the sun began to set._)

He slid the first stone onto the leather cord; it held the symbol for Together.

(_The long, harsh winter that followed did little to keep the boys separated. The duo managed to convince Hakoda's parents to let Bato stay with them when Bato's father left for a long fishing expedition. On particularly cold nights, they would snuggle together under one blanket, dreaming sweet nothings in their innocent cuddling._)

A smile crossed his lips as he slipped on the second stone, Dream, on to the cord. Many things had changed since they were boys- their dreams for one., the way they held each other close at night for another.

(_Winter led to spring and the boys soon turned nine in the slushy snow dunes. They began to outgrow some of their childish behaviors and activities. No longer would they run around the village hand-in-hand as they realized, after some guidance from their parents, that that was something that boys simply did not do together._

_Once they regained access to their cave, however, their hands would gravitate back to each other as though magnets had been placed in their mittens. So they would sit in the cave for hours on end, enjoying each other's company; their hands locked together so perfectly. It was their secret._)

The stone Secret clinked against its companions as it was added. Though they kept their public displays to a minimum, the men no longer needed to keep their affections as private as they had when they were kids.

(_A year later, the boys still hadn't outgrown their cave. Their parents finally figured out where the two had been sneaking off to on a daily basis, but saw no harm in the meetings so long as the cave wouldn't collapse._

_Some days, Hakoda would bring one of his weapons- normally his spear- and practice his battle techniques while Bato watched him silently from his spot on the ground. After an hour or so of practice, Hakoda would put the weapon down and sit beside his friend and sneak his hand over to the one that was waiting for him. Some days they would talk, but there were days where they felt no words were necessary and they would sit together in silent musing._

_It was one of those days, near the end of summer, that Bato had leaned over and stolen his first kiss. It only seemed right that he would share such a special occasion with his best friend, so, without thinking twice, Hakoda had returned the kiss quickly._)

Kiss joined the other stones. Their first kiss had come at a time in which neither of them had really understood what the action really meant; before either of them could comprehend what love and compassion truly were. That didn't make it, or the memory attached to it, any less special to him.

(_Months passed and, despite their innocent kiss, nothing had changed between the boys. Winter was almost over and the boys couldn't wait until the weather warmed so they could return to their place. Until then, they had to settle for the occasional sleep over. _

_Hakoda snuggled close to Bato, shivering a little until the other boy pulled him close and embraced him tightly. He closed his eyes and was almost off to the land of Dreams when his companion sudden;y spoke up, "Hakoda…"_

"_What?"_

"_When we get old enough, I think I want to marry you." Came the response with a yawn._

_Hakoda laughed a little, thinking his friend was joking; night time often produced rather silly discussions between the two of them. "We're 'sposed to marry girls, silly."_

"_But girls are icky." Bato stuck out his tongue with a 'blech' and a laugh. After a minute of silence, he added in a sleepy murmur, "'Sides… I don't think anyone other than me could put up with you for very long…"_)

He ran his thumb over the symbol for Marriage that decorated the largest, center stone. This stone held a double meaning: a reference to that night back when they were ten and the future event he hoped the other male would agree to.

(_It had taken until the pair were 16, after Hakoda met Kaya and asked her to marry him, for there to be any distance put in between them, mostly on Hakoda's end. The future chief had thought that things would change when he became engaged. He had expected Bato to suddenly become a distant and lovely memory of his childhood. But his best friend remained a very large part of his life._

_When the Southern Raiders struck the tribe and took his wife's life when he was 25, Bato had been there for him, had talked him out of his deep, sinking depression. He had even helped take care of Sokka and Katara to make things easier on the grieving man; he took over the cooking and chores and spent many nights over at Hakoda's igloo. _

_Bato claimed it was because he didn't have a family of his own and it gave him something to do rather than sit in his tent all day twiddling his thumbs. Hakoda knew that wasn't the whole story. The way Bato cared for his children and -more so- for him… He could swear that his best friend loved him. Not in the brotherly kind of way either; no. This love ran deeper, much deeper, than that. Perhaps Bato had always loved him and he had just been oblivious to it until that point._)

The sixth stone was called Support. All throughout his life, Bato had always been there for him, to catch him when he fell and help him back to his feet again. Loyal and faithful, he had dedicated his life to the chief and Hakoda counted himself lucky to have the man by his side, both as a friend and lover.

(_It took fear and separation to make Hakoda realize just how much he loved Bato. It had only been a year and a half after the men of the Southern Water Tribe had left for war when Bato was wounded with a horrible burn and was forced to be left behind at the abbey. Leaving his closest comrade behind weighed heavily on his conscience and, every night after setting up camp, a dull ache strummed in his chest to remind him of how lonely he was without Bato there with them… with him._

_When Bato rejoined them nearly six months later, Hakoda had to restrain himself from tackling the still healing man to the ground and smothering him with all his love and affection. Instead, he settled for a tight hug and a meaningful "Spirits, I've missed you."_)

As he added the stone Love to the collection, Hakoda felt like kicking himself for taking until the men were in their thirties to realize how much he loved and needed Bato. He felt worse for making his ever-patient friend wait for him to come to said realization.

(_They had been discussing defense plans when their hands brushed. A sensation filled Hakoda. His hand trailed up the scarred arm, across the shoulder blade, into the jungle of hair. There was a spark, a fire. Steady grip; lips crashed._

_Before he knew it, he was on top of his friend, pushing the tunic off the slender frame under him. Hands shaking from excited anticipation of the upcoming event- the joining of bodies that both men wanted, needed- he traced defined muscles- memorizing them, adoring them. Bato, usually the patient one, pulled him down into an impatient, bruising, hungry kiss, his long legs wrapping themselves firmly around his waist._

_A husky whisper, somewhere between a growl and a groan, drifted to his ear, "By the Spirits, Hakoda… if you make me wait any longer…"_)

A mirthful smile emerged as the stone Desire traveled down the cord. Reflecting on it now, he realized the first time they had made love hadn't been perfect. It had been beyond it.

(_When they were reunited for a second time, after having been placed in separate Fire Nation prisons, Hakoda lunged at the taller man, nearly knocking him over in an unrestrained hug. Bato, after regaining the wind that had been knocked out of him, smiled and hugged him back; both mean held back tears of joy._

"_Don't ever leave my side again."_

"_On my honor, I won't."_

_That was when he decided, with one hundred percent certainty, that he wanted to marry the man. He might have asked then had Chit Sang not interrupt their reunion with a classy "Get a room."_

_He might have asked later had they not spent the night getting 'reacquainted'.)_

The last stone, Eternal, completed the set and Hakoda felt anticipation circuit through his entire being. Now all he could do was wait until Bato showed…

Until then he would continue to tread through wonderful memories.

--

"Hakoda?" Bato called as he pulled back the door-flap of the igloo, balancing a bowl of stew in his other hand. The sun was beginning to set and he decided the chief would appreciate something to eat and enjoy his company even more.

"I've been waiting…" His love stated without turning, the longing obvious in his inflection.

"Sorry… I've been helping the men unload the boats all day. It was getting late before I realized it and I decided I could make it up to you by bringing you some stew"

"Bato… I need to ask you something. It's something I probably should have asked a long time ago…" He turned and held out his hands, revealing the newly made necklace. Bato's eyes widened and a light blush painted his cheeks. "I would be honored if you would marry me."

The bowl clattered to the floor, stew splashing and spilling as Bato tackled Hakoda in a tight hug.

"I'll take that as a yes."

"Of course!"

A/N... Again: On a related sidenote, not all of the themes are drabbles. to see the fanart, check out my DA page. :D


	13. Citric Acid

A/N: Citric acid comes from fruits like limes and lemons... and we all know what that means in the world of fanfiction... w;;;

Totally dedicated to Kira73 (on DA) since she's so supportive of my wiritng and has been dropping hints all around that she wanted to see a Bakoda smut. This is as close as I'll probably ever get.

I feel so embarassed posting this though... It's the first limon I've posted for public reading.

Oh, and fun story:  
I was almost late to class today after spending until 2am working on a paper I had due today... Get to class with 5 minutes to spare. Class was cancelled; paper isn't due until Thursday now. So I sat in the Student lobby/cafeteria and wrote boderline porn. Gay porn at that. Totally not telling my mom that.

* * *

From the moment he summoned Bato to his tent to discuss their defense plans in private, Hakoda knew something would happen; he was planning on it.

The men had discussed their deeper feelings for each other after Bato had rejoined them, but nothing had happened between them that night. Their relationship was far too new and the taller man was still not fully recovered. Since then, they had been too busy - they were in the middle of a war after all- and had little alone time for anything more than subtle touches and quick kisses. But now… Now that they had taken Chameleon Bay and set up camp… Now he had time. And he was going to take advantage of it.

--

When Bato joined him, Hakoda had a map of the area rolled out, a map he fully intended to shove to the side once he began ravishing that wonderful body that was making its way to sit beside him.

Their strategizing lasted all of five minutes before Hakoda tactfully brushed his hand against Bato's, resting it beside the other man's as his eyes wandered up to gaze at the dark blue orbs belonging to his friend. With a smile, he trailed said hand up the arm- the burned arm that had separated them and brought them closer together, to this point. The red-brown skin was smooth under his touch despite the scar tissue and tight muscles; his hand continued its journey, venturing across the shoulder blade that seemed almost to narrow to be masculine and up the curve of the neck, into the jungle of bushy hair. There his hand stopped, fingers twining themselves in the mane, pulling the other face towards his. Their lips crashed together; a hand clasped around his bicep.

His mouth parted, witty tongue slipping out and stroking the other pair of lips, asking for entrance that would not be denied. As his tongue explored its new territory, the hand lost in the sea of hair untangled itself and drifted out and up to the hair-tie, pulling it loose and freeing the rest of the beautiful locks.

The kiss broke for a moment as Hakoda carelessly shoved the ignored map out of harm's way and pushed the other male back with a firm, passionate kiss. Bato's back hit the floor with a painless thud, hair splayed out behind his head like a makeshift pillow. A barely audible whine escaped that mouth as Hakoda pulled away again; the whine turned into a groan of approval as lips trailed down the chin and to the neck, nipping, sucking, bruising, marking. His calloused hands made their way down to the waist, one hand guiding the body under him up as the other undid the belt and loosened the tunic. The first part of their mission complete, said hands trailed back up to push the tunic off the slim frame, exposing the muscular chest and midriff hidden underneath.

Attacking lips left their post and Hakoda let out a low, appreciative growl at the sight beneath him. Bato's chest rose and fell in quick, irregular pants as Hakoda's hands, shaking from excited anticipation, trailed down it, tracing the defined muscles; memorizing them, adoring them. He was caught off guard when Bato propped himself up and placed a hand behind his head, wrapping those long, strong legs around his waist and pulling him into a bruising kiss.

A husky whisper, somewhere between a growl and a groan, drifted to his ear. "By the Spirits, Hakoda… if you make me wait any longer…"

Bato didn't need to complete the empty threat; Hakoda placed another kiss on the exposed neck before trailing butterfly kisses down the bare chest and over toned abs. He felt his Wolftail loosen and fall when Bato pulled out the tie and entangled his hands in the freed hair; he dipped his tongue into the navel and licked his way back up. He enjoyed the shuddering moan he received from stopping to suck on the collarbone.

As soon as he unlatched himself from the collarbone, he helped nervous hands remove his own tunic and tossed it aside to add to the disarray of the tent. He pressed their bare chests together, savoring the contact of skin-on-skin. Nuzzling the neck he had marked as his property, Hakoda murmured against the warm skin, "There's no turning back now. Are you sure you want to- Hngh!"

A moan interrupted his question as hips grinded up against his slowly. That answered his question with a definite "yes, take me now".

--

Their boots and pants soon found themselves strewn across the tent; passion often involves a degree of chaos.

Hakoda positioned himself between tense legs. He gripped the hips under him and leaned down to place a gentle kiss on parted lips before pushing in slowly. He had tried his best to prepare his friend for this, but it did little to help, as evident from the wince of pain. Hakoda frowned and buried his face in the crook of the out-stretched neck, using all the control he had to not move until he knew his partner was ready.

He wanted to ensure as little pain and displeasure as possible; it would break him if this experience was harmful to his friend, his lover. He was sure tears would come, but he would kiss them away; kiss him to distract from the discomfort until the pleasure began. He guessed (rightly so, he discovered later) that the first couple times would be like this, until Bato's body grew accustomed to the feeling. Hakoda was even willing to switch their positions if it was what the object of his desires and affections wanted.

An awkward roll of the hips urged Hakoda to start moving; he started a sow pace, working up speed and depth over time. He was determined to make up for the discomfort by making his friend moan and mewl in ecstasy.

--

His tight grip on the writhing body under him loosened after his climax, their sweaty bodies sticking together as each tried to catch his breath. Finally, Hakoda pulled out fully. He sat back and looked for his blanket. Their bodies were still hot from the action, but would soon cool off now that the deed was done. He found the blanket under pants that may have been his and snatched it out, covering himself and Bato as he laid down beside the other man. He slid an arm underneath his lover and smiled as Bato shifted and snuggled against him.

"Hakoda," His voice was shaking as he fought exhaustion, "That was… Spirits was that…"

"I know." He turned his head and kissed his love tenderly. Euphoric silence settled over them - naked, dirty under that blanket. Sleep would come soon. Until then, he was content to lay there with the man he wanted to dedicate his life to. Their chests rose and fell in rhythm together; their hearts beat as one.

No words were needed to express how deeply they felt for each other.


	14. Broken

A/N: I can't explain this one beyond: It wrote itself.

* * *

He had to be strong, had to be brave. For his men, for his children. He was their leader. He had to be strong. He had to be…

But he wasn't strong. Not below the surface. That was an act, a façade, a mask. It was a lie. In the quiet of his tent with only his thoughts as company, he was weak, miserable. He had done nothing to save his wife, he couldn't have. But still he felt the guilt of her death looming over him, dooming him. His kids' faces, hurt, confused, wanting Dad, haunted his vision.

He wanted to cry, wanted to scream, wanted… something, anything. Release, freedom, peace.

He had to pull himself together! He wasn't broken! Not yet, not now. Couldn't be.

He had to be strong.

He was falling apart at the seams, hanging onto his sanity by a thread.

He had to pull himself together.

Tears, bitter and full of rage, stung his eyes. No. He couldn't cry. Not now, not ever. If he started, he would lose control. He would break, he would fall. His men would be lost. His children would shatter.

He had to be strong.

Arms wrapped around his shoulders. How long had Bato been there? He hadn't heard him enter, hadn't heard his call. A further sign of his weakness.

He had to be strong.

He couldn't cry.

Not now.

Not now.

Not now.

Not…

"It's not safe for you to do this to yourself."

What was Bato talking about? He was strong. He was the Chief of the Southern Water Tribe, proud father of two beautiful children. He was brave, he was strong.

"You can't fool me, Hakoda."

No. He could. Everyone else fell for the act.

"It's okay to cry."

Crying would prove his weakness. He couldn't cry, he wouldn't cry. He refused.

He was strong.

He was strong.

He was…

Weak…

Broken…

Overdue, shuddering sobs broke the silence.


	15. Confrontation

A/N: So this is something I wrote for an assignment in my Creative Writing class... Granted, by the time I turn it in, I'll have changed the names and Bato will be a woman... But uh... yeah.

Incase you were wondering, the assignment gave us a very specific pattern to follow. A is having a conflict with values, setting, continue with conflict, view of person B, saying. B replies and does something. Etc, etc, etc.

* * *

Hakoda contemplated his upcoming marriage; he loved his betrothed dearly, but his heart belonged to another. The snow here melted off into the tide, revealing the smooth rocks underneath- this spot was isolated from his village. He had shared this place- his thinking place- only with his heart's desire. The crunching of snow behind him indicated another presence, he need not look to know who it was. "Weather is perfect for fishing, don't you think?"

"Perfect for a wedding as well…" Bato replied, sitting beside him on the snow dune.

A cool breeze whipped his hair into his face, stinging sharply when it struck. "Fate made me chief and it's my duty…" The breeze picked up, sending a chill down his spine, "…To marry her."

"I know that." A gloved hand rested on his shoulder. "And, unfortunately, I have to accept it."

The warm hand only escalated the chill coursing through his body. "And you know…"

"Tell me anyway." Voice wistful as he rested his head against Hakoda's shoulder.

"I'll always love you."

"And I will always be waiting."

A brief moment of silence accompanied by nuzzling. His heart melted like the snow in the tide.

"I'm sorry." Hakoda whispered, tilting his love's head up to meet his tender gaze.

"Be mine, if only for now… Please." Bato leaned forward to touch their foreheads together, lips parted, wanting, begging to be kissed.

"It'll only make the pain worse later…" He lifted a hand to run through thick locks.

Closing the distance between them, he placed a light kiss on wind-chapped lips. "I need you."

His arms wrapped around his secret lover. "Only for tonight, Bato."

"And tomorrow…"

"Tomorrow I will belong to her."

"Please make me forget that until then…"

Heat filled his groin as his partner straddled him. Melting snow soaked into the cloth of his pants, freezing the backsides of his thighs. Warm breath tickled his neck, his senses reeled. One last affair before his marriage, one last chance to enjoy this feeling. "Only for you."


	16. Misfortune

So I found a very lovely, stream-of-conciousness, one-sided Bakoda piece on Livejournal yesterday (lol found it on here as well; it's in my favorite stories) and decided to write a mirror for it, from Hakoda's point-of-view. I kinda phailed, but I gave it a shot. Streams-of-conciousness definitely aren't my forte.

* * *

he watched the fire burst from the soldier's fist, time slowing as his best friend pushed a younger soldier out of the way. he was scared. he shouldn't have been but watching the fire flicker against skin, burning, scarring, melting, twisting; it took him back. back to that day when the southern raiders came, that day when he lost his wife, his love, the mother of his children. her charred corpse lying there on the floor of his home; he wished that they would have taken prisoners that day. he wished he had never seen her remains, he wished more that Katara hadn't seen them as well. death leaves no hope, only misery and heart break.

a pained scream, almost too animal, like an injured wolf broke him from the image of his wife; he now focused on his friend falling in slow motion, hitting the ground, arm scorched. Bato. his friend, comrade, second-in-command, confidante. the man he had grown up with, played pranks with, spent countless days with; so many memories, so much of his life. the man he had grown to love, cherish more dearly than anything besides his kids. Bato, who now lay in the dirt, fire nation soldier poised over him, preparing the final blow.

no!

he couldn't let it happen again; he wouldn't lose another person he loved. he couldn't stand to have his heart break again. not again, not again.

rushing forward, no second thoughts, he shoved the soldier away. His warriors circled around him, driving the soldiers away, but he didn't care. Bato was his focus now. his world, burnt earth. please don't die, please don't die.

he sighed, relieved as those eyes opened again, weak smile, forced, played on his lips. if he were a weaker man, not calloused by war, he would have started crying then. no he would have been crying earlier, but different tears, sad tears. now would be happy tears. but warriors don't cry, don't show emotion. especially not in battle, not during war; not even if their best friend died. those lips parted, words forming on them, flowing out of them.

_I'm sorry._

_don't ever scare me like that again._

he cradled his friend in his arms, determined to protect him, to find help for him. Bato was lighter than he remembered, seemed so fragile now, yet still strong, fighting the pain. his heart beat faster, fluttering, with Bato's head resting against his chest. in another time, another situation, this would be romantic. not now, not in the ashes of pain.

he took him to the nuns, to a place of healing, of nurturing, of pleasant smells. he would have to leave him, he had to give him time to heal; he didn't want to, he was selfish, he was childish.

blue eyes pleaded with him, begging _please don't leave me_; he wanted to stay, never leave. forever side-by-side; that's how things were supposed to be, carrying each other through life's struggles. but he had to leave; Bato would hae to understand.

Because he had to leave.

_I love you._


	17. Still

A/N: I really shouldn't be awake right now; my mind is off in some exhausted corner of Lala land. So I don't know if this makes one lick of sense right now. But I tried to lay down at 4 and all of a sudden the last line of this drabble popped into my head and wouldn't let me sleep until I got it out of my system. =_= And now that it is... *goes to bed*

* * *

Hakoda knew that time could slow.

In battle, he noticed that, if he concentrated, time seemed to move at half-speed. That fireblast whizzing towards him to the spectator's eye only appeared to inch and crawl towards him. All he had to do was casually step to the side and he was out of harm's way.

On the hunt, that armadillotiger he provoked lunged forward, swiping at him. Time slowed and he marveled at the movement of the beast's muscles under taut flesh before ducking, out of the way of it's claws.

The day the Southern Raiders came and he listened to his daughter's terrified plea, everything moved in slow motion. He heart pounded painfully, slowly against his chest. The scene spilt out before him in still frames. His igloo. Drawing back the door in a slowly swift motion. Her body burnt black. Falling to his knees. His daughter screaming. His son crying. Her burial dragged on all day in his grief.

Hakoda knew that time could accelerate.

After side-stepping the oncoming attack from enemy soldiers, time sped up again. He stepped forward, fists poised, preparing to attack. His fist connected with the anonymous bender's gut and sent him flying back. His lips curled up into a smirk as yet another battle was his. Battles did not last long enough and victories were fleeting.

The armadillotiger's claws nicked his wolf tail, slashing a few strands from the tip. He growled to match the beast's hiss as time accelerated once more. It snarled, rearing back to make another attempt at injuring him. He readied his spear, thrusting it forward into the armadillo tiger's chest. The beast froze, whined, slumped over in what seemed like seconds. He released the spear and let the creature fall to the ground, resting his foot on it's side and jerking the spear out. The thrill of the hunt would wear off too soon and the meal would only satiate his hunger for a brief amount of time.

After they recovered from their tragedy and the family went on with their lives, time flew by too quickly. He watched his children grow up before his eyes. Sokka was one day a boy still in need of his father's loving guidance; Katara was a small version of her mother, a timid little girl. It only seemed that he had blinked and they were grown. Sokka was now a brave warrior, a man who could stand on his own; Katara was now the spitting image of her mother, a woman entirely independent. He was amazed at how the war made time go by so fast and regretted he had missed his children transformations into adults.

Hakoda knew time could never freeze.

The battle always ended; it could never last forever. Nor could the hunt or those times in life that define a person.

He smiled, hands burying, entangling themselves in Bato's hair. He leaned forward, noting how his friend mirrored his actions, and pressed his lips against the other's with tender love. Lean, strong arms wrapped around his waist, pulling him closer. Eyes slipped closed as his friend pressed into the kiss and he pressed back.

Time slowed, accelerated, slowed again, bipolar in it's fluctuations as he admired the blushing form under him before and after making love. One of his hands, trembling from exhaustion and the high of release, wandered, found one of Bato's, wrapping around it, fingers interlocking with his partner's. _I love you._

_Hakoda knew time couldn't freeze. But how he wished that it could at times like this._


	18. Want

A/N: I blame my 3-in-the-morning muse for this idea. And I blame the lack of erotic massage fics for the sheer failure that resulted. XD I really couldn't find that many good references for this idea. It made me sad. D: And I'm sure that me ending before the good stuff will make some of y'all sad as well. XD

* * *

"You look stressed." Bato commented off-handedly as he entered the hut. Hakoda looked up from where he was seated on the animal skins. War discussions were not going well; the men were reluctant to leave their (somewhat) peaceful lives to go fight in a never-ending war.

"Is it that obvious?" A smidge of sarcasm accompanied by a smile both feeble and fake. Bato crossed the room and knelt behind his Chief, hands going up to the broad shoulders and massaging through the coat as best he could.

"If you don't relax, you'll grow grey long before your time." Bato frowned, removing his hands from the shoulders and tugging his gloves off. Hakoda turned his head, giving him a questioning look. "You'll have to take your coat off if you want a proper massage."

"Grey hair makes a man look dignified and wise." He responded after removing the heavy outer layer; he shivered at the temperature difference despite the fire that kept the hut moderately warm.

"And older than what he is." Bato added, replacing his hands on his friend's shoulders and kneading tense muscles through the thinner tunic. "I happen to like your hair the color it is."

"Enjoy it while you can." He groaned as Bato's hands moved up his shoulder blades to the base of his neck, leaning back into the warm touch. "If things keep going the way they are, I'll soon have a full head of grey."

"Stop talking nonsense." He rolled his thumbs over the base of the neck, smiling to himself as he felt the muscles relaxing under his touch. He continued the circular motions for a few minutes, reveling in the hush that has settled over them; the only sounds were the fire crackling and Hakoda humming soft and sweet, eyes closed.

Bato stopped his careful minstrations, one arm draping itself over his friend's chest, the other moving up. His hand placed under the chin, tickling the beard, tilted Hakoda's head up, to the side, positioning it at the perfect angle for him to capture those salty-sweet lips. Hakoda, with eyes fluttering open and one arms raised to place a hand behind his Second-in-Command's head, returned the kiss, eyes now half-lidded and lips parting to allow passionate tongue to dance with his. There was no battle for dominance here for there was no need for it; both men considered the other as their equal.

Bato broke the kiss, lips gliding down the cheek to place tender kisses against Hakoda's neck.. He nipped, sucked, as his arms drifted down to undo the tunic's belt. Hands roamed over bare chest, rubbing muscles, as Hakoda shrugged the tunic off. He took a momnt to caress the pecs, slowly moving his way down to the abdomen; at the same time, his kisses trailed down the neck to the nape and across the shoulder. Hakoda groaned his appreciation at the sensual attention, even more so once those hands reached the waistline of his pants.

"You still haven't finished my back."

"Hmm?" Bato hummed against bare flesh before lifting his mouth away from the tasty skin, resting his chin on his friend's shoulder. His hands remained still where they were: one tucked halfway under the waistline, the other flat against the toned stomach. "So I haven't. But…"

He kissed the shoulder again, the hand once on Hakoda's stomach drifted down to join the other under the cover of the pants. Hakoda moaned, his hips bucking up into the touch, wanting more.

"I think it will have to wait."


	19. Night

A/N: =_= I'm not very happy with this one. At all. But I promised you guys I'd finish typing it, so yeah. V_V; I think Foreign is thenext one I have written, and I still have the idea behind 'Obsession' stuck in my head (courtesy of my 3 am muse).

And if anyone is interested, I'm working on a Bakoda doujinshi type thing. It's being posted on my DA page. :3

* * *

Hakoda had dark bags settling in under his eyes- he had seen them forming in his reflection earlier in the week and knew they were getting worse by the day. It took hours to get to sleep without Kya sharing his bed, her warm body snuggled against his. Not to mention Katara's recurring nightmares - and who could blame her; no child should have to see their mother's charred corpse. It was always when he could feel sweet sleep calling him that she would rush to him, bawling; it took hours to calm her back down, it seemed. He was lucky to get more than a couple hours of sleep before morning reared its head.

"You don't look so well." Bato commented from over the stewpot. In those weeks following Kya's death, Bato had taken over as the caretaker of the family, for which Hakoda was deeply grateful. "You need rest."

"If only there were more hours in the day. I can't surrender my duties as chief… and my children need me now more than ever."

Bato shook his head in disapproval as he stirred the frothing stew, "That's no reason to not take care of yourself."

Hakoda, deciding to avoid the topic of his personal well-being, asked if the food was almost ready. Receiving a nod, he started to stand. "I'll call the children."

Bato motioned him to sit, "That won't be necessary."

"And why not? The kids need to eat as well."

"I talked to Mama Kanna and she agreed you needed the night off. She's going to watch the kids tonight so you can rest." He explained as he poured some of the stew into a bowl and passed it to his friend.

"…Thank you."

***

The men sat in silence as they ate. Once he was finished, Bato stood and put out the cooking fire. "You make sure you go straight to bed. I'll bring the children back by in the morning."

"Thank you again." Hakoda stood, stretching. "For everything you've done for my family since…"

"It's been my pleasure." He smiled, "After all, your family is like my family."

***

Hakoda rolled over again. A frown stenciled across his lips. Without the children there, the hut seemed too quiet, too cold, too… dead. With a sigh, he got up and exited his home. Darkness had long settled in, only a few lanterns dotted the village in the direction he was headed. A blazing fire danced in the distance behind him and he could make out idle chatter of the night watchmen. Fortunately, he didn't need much light to know where he was going; it was a very familiar path. Reaching his destination, he slipped inside the darkened hut as quiet as possible and sneaked his way to the back room.

"Bato… Bato!" He prodded his friend gently with his toes.

The harsh whisper and slight movement drew his friend from slumber. Blinking and trying to comprehend the scene, Bato gave him a confused look. "Hakoda?"

"I can't sleep."

Bato sat up, rubbing his eyes wearily and yawning. "Have you tried to?"

"Of course I have. But the hut is too empty without the kids there." Hakoda plopped down to sit beside his friend. "Would you mind if I stayed the night?"

"Of course not. There's an extra blanket out in the main room."

***

After making himself a cozy as possible, Hakoda broke the silence again. "You remember when we were little and you used to sleep over when your dad was away? And you remember how you had trouble sleeping because you were afraid of the evil spirits?"

"Well, yes… but what does that have to do with you not being able to sleep now?"

"Well, back then I told you that I'd protect you through the night and I held you next to me all night long so you wouldn't be scared."

"…You aren't scared of the evil spirits, are you?" Bato teased, exhaustion dripping in his tone.

"No… but I am lonely." Hakoda admitted; he didn't like announcing one of his weaknesses to any one, not even his closest comrade. Bato remained silent and Hakoda sighed, rolling over onto his side, his back now to his friend. He felt surprised when he felt the other warm body press against him, an arm snaking around him.

Bato sighed, nuzzling Hakoda's neck. "You don't need to feel lonely; you'll always have me."


	20. War

A/N: I was going through my handy-dandy 100 themes notebook (yeah, I write most of these drabbles in said notebook), when I noticed this one that I had written a couple months ago. It was one of those that was close to being put on the chopping block... But it's alright enough to share, I suppose.

This drabble is very obviously set during book 3, episode 1.

* * *

Leaning back against the railing around the observation deck, Hakoda let out a sigh. He had thought being reunited with his children would be a more joyful event and, with Sokka, it had been. But Katara… She seemed so distant, so detached. They couldn't even hold a conversation without her passing some snide remark or giving him the cold shoulder. It just wasn't how he remembered her; his sweet little girl had become so bitter that he'd only be fooling himself if he said it didn't frighten him. "I just don't know what I'm going to do with her…"

"I'm sure she'll warm back up to you. Just give her time." Bato leaned on the railing beside him, placing his hand comfortingly on his friend's shoulder.

"If I just knew what was wrong- what was going on inside her head!- I could fix it!"

"Hakoda, you left them both to go fight in a war where there was only a slim chance you'd return. Not to mention they had lost their mother only a few years before that. How would you feel if you were in her situation?"

Hakoda frowned as he glanced up at his friend, realization dawning on him at the words. The pieces fell into place: Katara was hurt because she felt as though he had abandoned her. In her mind, he had left for stupid reason and had been afraid she may never see him again, that she had lost both her parents in a breif amount of time. She wasn't angry at him, she just hated the decision he had made.

"You should talk to her about it."

The chief nodded and pushed himself off the railing, heading to the door leading to the stairwell. As he approached the threshold, a thought crossed his mind and he turned back to Bato with a questioning look. "How do you know that's what Katara is feeling? Have you talked to her already?"

"No, I haven't. But I hace experienced a similar feeling." Bato stepped forward and hesitantly placed his arms around his companion's middle, hugging the shorter male to himself. This level of affection was new to the pair, seeing as the had only recently began to define their relationship in a romantic sense. "After you left me at the Abbey, I felt as though you personally had abandoned me. The ache I felt was unbearable and after I was able to rejoin you, I found that I harbored resentment towards you for leaving me there. I, however, realized that I had no legitimate reason to feel that way and handled it in a mature manner rather than just lashing out at you."

"Ah… So _that's_ why you avoided me at first and then called me a jerk when I asked what was wrong!" Hakoda grinned as he teased his friend, earning a playful glare from Bato.

"Just go talk to your daughter."

"Thanks, Bato." He kissed the taller man in appreciation.

A clanging echo from the stairwell notified the men that someone was headed up their way. Bato stepped away from his partner as both men waited to see who was coming. Katara emerged, her eyes brimming with tears that threatened to spill over at any second. Bato gave Hakoda an understanding look.

"I'll leave you two alone." With that, he left Hakoda to talk things out with his daughter.

***

Bato was there when Hakoda watched his children leave to relocate Aang.

"It's hard watching them go."

"I'm sure they'll be fine."

"I know… they are my kids after all. They just grew up so much while I was gone."


	21. Silence

A/N: Written for the Avatar_contest community over on LJ. Sorry it's so short. My muse hasn't been very vocal lately.

ALSO: I feel like a review-whore typing this, but if you like these drabbles, please review. Reviews make DPAK happy.

* * *

Bato sat on the sandy beach, leaning back against his boat and staring up at the stars. He had made this a nightly habit ever since the nuns deemed him healthy enough to leave the abbey for brief amounts of time. The smell of salty freedom carried by the sea breeze was a welcome change from the sickeningly sweet smell of the perfumes the nuns made. He closed his eyes and sighed; the ache to return to his fellow warriors was growing stronger by the day.

_My fellow warriors… _He snorted.

Who was he trying to fool? It wasn't the other men of the Water Tribe that he longed to be with right now; they were like family to him, but being separated from _them_ wasn't the cause of his grief. No. It was because of _him._

_Hakoda._

His chief. His closest friend. His secret desire. His everything.

Every since they were kids, he had never imagined life without Hakoda by his side. Hakoda was always there cracking a lame joke, plotting a prank guaranteed to get them in trouble, letting him know how much their friendship meant to him. Now that Hakoda wasn't here with him…

_It's only a temporary thing. You will see him again. Any day now that letter will come. Then you can rejoin him. He tried to reassure himself. The words echoed in his head; he had trouble believing them._

He wasn't sure how long he sat there trying to convince himself that he would be back at Hakoda's side soon enough, but his legs were stiff as he stood. He stretched, his back popping, before he headed back to the abbey, his expression glum.

_It was sad. He had never realized how much he needed Hakoda before being separated from him, never realized that so much of his life revolved around the chief. And he planned on letting his friend know this whenever he saw him again._


	22. Foreign

"It's going to take a while to get used to these new clothes." Hakoda remarked, securing the belt around his waist. He held his arm up, sniffing the grey sleeve, his nose wrinkling up in disdain. It- and the rest of the uniform- reeked of soot and ash, both bitter and acidic- nothing like the tantalizing smell of salt-water and sea breeze his traditional clothes smelt of. He had yet to put the armor on, dreading how constricting it would feel; the Water Tribe was the embodiment of the ocean, meant to be free and fluid, not restricted and contained.

"And the hairstyle." Bato frowned, trying to pull his warrior's wolf tail up into the 'fashionable' topknot. His thick hair was not well suited for Fire Nation trends. He was finding it near impossible to keep his hair neat and tucked behind his ears and his topknot was far too sloppy to pass as accurate.

Hakoda couldn't help but laugh at the sight and motioned his friend over to him. "Here, let me help you out. Bring the brush with you."

Bato obeyed, still frowning as he handed his chief the brush before sitting down on the bed. Hakoda sat behind him, pulling the hair tie out of Bato's hair. He began to run the brush through thick locks, apologizing each time he had to roughly tug through a stubborn he had combed all of the tangles out, he set the brush aside and began pulling back the sides until he had enough to properly form the topknot. "Let me know if I make it too tight."

Bato gave a slight nod as Hakoda pulled the hair tighter, folding it back and binding it with the hair tie. It uncomfortable, but he could live with it.

"How's that?"

"It's certainly different. I don't see how the Fire Nation citizens can stand it…" Bato turned, offering a smile. He lifted his hand to where his friend's dual, tightly woven dreads had once been. "You look like a different person with your hair like this. It's a shame you had to take them out."

"Don't remind me." But that was what the Fire Nation was good at: taking away individualism and forcing it to be exchanged for blind conformity. He hated it. "It was a sacrifice I had to make to blend in."

"I know; it's still a shame."

The men studied each other, processing the how different they looked now; they still had an air of familiarity about them, yet everything seemed different. Dark hues of red and grey adorned their bodies, colors that didn't suit either of them, and their normally wild hair was constricted, tightly pulled back to army regulations. Water Tribe men weren't supposed to look like this; it was all too surreal, too foreign. After all their time at war, never before had their desire to be back home been so intense.


End file.
